


Sat in satin

by rudbeckia



Series: Flatmates who... [8]
Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Developing Relationship, Lingerie, M/M, establishing priorities, okay they REALLY like Alien
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-03
Updated: 2018-03-03
Packaged: 2019-03-26 14:56:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13860114
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rudbeckia/pseuds/rudbeckia
Summary: Armitage and Ben have been together for a few weeks after Armitage’s parents disowned him. Armitage is beginning to find out things about Ben that he didn’t know before when they were just flatmates... like how badly he needs new underwear.Good thing the local department store in town has a new lingerie boutique.





	Sat in satin

Armitage Hux picked up a stained grey-yellow, frayed piece of cotton jersey fabric with a look of disgust and dropped it on the kitchen floor. He knew it was clean, technically, since he’d heard Ben turn the new washing-drier on after kissing him a frustratingly short but passionate good morning before leaving for the gym, but he was overcome with the desire to wash his hands after touching it. He hauled the rest of Ben’s laundry out of the machine so that he could put his own clothes in. As he folded Ben’s white teeshirts and vests, Armitage collected the underpants into a pile. One pair, the least disgusting, he shook out and folded. The rest, discoloured in patches he did not want to examine too closely and with ends and loops of popped shirring elastic poking out of the waistbands, he bundled into a plastic bag and binned, all the while wishing they had a proper fire he could incinerate them in. Then he texted Ben.

Ben Solo frowned at his phone. “Trouble in paradise?” asked Phasma with a raised eyebrow.  
“No,” said Ben, “Armitage wants to meet me in town later. Says we need to go shopping.”  
“Oh good,” replied Phasma. “I’ll text ‘Tak and we can all go out in town. You know, eat food. What you boys getting? Something nice for the flat?”  
“Probably,” said Ben with a laugh. “He made a huge deal over sorting the laundry when we got the washing machine plumbed in yesterday. I bet he wants a fancy laundry basket.”  
“You have a washing machine?” said Phasma, suddenly attentive. “Can ‘Mo and I come round at the weekend?”  
“We are not,” said Ben, sitting up to glare at Phasma, “doing the weightlifting club’s kit.”

 

Armitage grinned wide, face lighting up as soon as he recognised Ben’s unmistakeable gait approaching him through the five o’clock crowd. “Hi babe,” he said, looking around then kissing Ben on the cheek. “Thanks for coming. ‘Tak says we’re meeting at that new Bengali place at six so we should have time.”  
“Time?” said Ben, “for what? It won’t take an hour, will it?”  
“Well,” said Armitage, taking Ben’s hand and squeezing. “It might. I, um, threw out all of your old underwear. I”m taking you shopping for some new stuff.”  
A tug on Armitage’s hand told him that while he’d walked, Ben had not.  
“You... what?”  
“I, um...” Armitage took a step back to face Ben. “I know I shouldn’t have, but I was folding your laundry and some of it was.. well... a bit...”  
“It was comfortable!” Ben scowled at Armitage. “Can you get it back out of the bin and—“  
“No, the bin lorry came,” Armitage added quickly then smiled brightly and added, “but I can get you some new.”  
Ben’s scowl lessened but only slightly. “I hope we can find some identical to my old pairs. I liked them!”

It was getting dark and the shop windows glowed bright with gaudy pre-Christmas displays. Armitage felt Ben’s mood soften and he snuck their clasped hands into the pocket of his wool coat for warmth. They soon reached the department store Armitage wanted to visit but there was a slight resistance to his change of direction.  
“Here?” Ben shook his head. “Are you sure? It’s probably expensive.”  
“They’re more likely to have a decent range,” countered Armitage. “It’s that or try, like, eight different places or take your chance with sizing on the internet.”  
“But it would be cheaper to—“  
“Brendol’s paying,” snapped Armitage, then he softened and stroked Ben’s cheek. “I still have a bit left from the final allowance payment on his credit card before he cuts me off. If I want to spend it on something nice that’s going to be covering your dick I will do. Okay?”  
“In that case,” Ben grinned at Armitage and leaned closer, “can we buy a year’s supply of lube?”

Ben thought it endearing the way he could make Armitage’s eyes sparkle and cheeks blush. Armitage recovered quickly and went marching off through the glass-panelled, brass-handled, dark-wooden doors into the brightness of the perfumery. Ben followed and held his breath for as long as he could, letting out a long sigh when he was clear of the last counter. He caught up with Armitage at the lift.  
“We need the fourth floor,” said Armitage with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “There’s a new boutique I want to you to look at. ‘Tak told me about it.”

The lift _ding_ -ed and opened and a family spilled out. Once the door was clear, Armitage and Ben got in. Ben stabbed at the door close button and the second they were in the relative privacy of the moving lift, he cupped Armitage’s face and kissed him hard. Armitage giggled and pretended to resist Ben’s thigh pressing between his legs until the lift lurched to a halt. They moved apart, red faced and grinning, and the doors opened to admit two more weary shoppers. They spent the last few seconds of their trip up to the fourth floor leering at each other’s reflections in the mirror walls.

They excuse-me-d their way out of the lift and onto the fourth floor. Ben stared, jaw dropping.  
_”Arm, this is lingerie!”_ he hissed. _”There are bras and stuff!”_  
Armitage laughed. “And some of them are very nice too. Maybe you could get Phasma... No. I think she’d actually hurt you if you asked her cup size. This way.”  
Armitage took Ben’s hand and pulled to make him follow. Ben stared at the back of Armitage’s head and looked neither left nor right until he was in more familiar territory. On seeing the racks of shorts, Ben sighed and smiled. He found his size and pulled out a three-pack of serviceable, plain white jersey shorts. Armitage handed him another three pack, this time in red and black. “More practical,” he said. “Won’t go grey. That’s six pairs. You need one more. This way.”  
“Did you throw out _all_ of my underwear?” asked Ben, following Armitage.  
“Almost,” replied Armitage. “I saved one pair just in case you couldn’t meet me tonight.”

Ben frowned when Armitage stopped and pointed at the new boutique inside the department store. “This is the place ‘Tak told me about. He got Than’s birthday present here. But don’t tell Than that you know because ‘Tak was most of the way down a bottle of Rioja when he boasted to me about how sexy Than looked in cerise lace.”  
Ben stared so hard he wondered if his eyeballs might actually pop out. He patted Armitage’s arm and said, “Are you sure? I mean, do they have, um...”  
“Bras that fit you? Probably.” Armitage grinned. “Would you like one?”  
“No!” Ben bit his lip and his face flushed red.  
“Shame,” said Armitage with a sigh. “I think they’re rather nice. I bet you’d look fantastic in a cami-top and knickers.”  
“What?” Ben stared at Armitage, waiting for a translation. Armitage laughed.  
“There are lingerie sets for men. You don’t have to get anything you’re not comfortable in. We can go back to the packs of briefs and boxers if you’re embarrassed.”  
“But,” said Ben, with no idea where his protest was going. The more he stared, the more he wanted to slip cool silk over his skin and feel good about it.  
“Imagine how much it would irritate Brendol if he knew my loverboy looked sexier in satin and lace than—“  
“Okay!” Ben blew a breath out and up that made his hair fluff away from his face for a second. “There’s no harm in looking I guess. You’re sure you want to see me in this stuff?”  
“Oh!” Armitage leaned close and barely breathed his answer in Ben’s ear. _”Oh fuck yes. I want to see you in it and I want—”_  
“How can I help you gentlemen?”  
Both Ben and Armitage answered the assistant with averted eyes. The assistant smiled and sighed. “Just having a look? Hmm? Well, I’ll be over there,” the assistant paused to point, “next to the changing room. In case you need help with sizes.”  
The assistant retreated around the end of a rack of frothy lace and cream silk. Ben murmured to Armitage, _”We could come back another time,”_ but Armitage shook his head.  
“No,” he said. “We’ve half an hour before we’re meeting the others. Let’s find something fun for later.”

Between them, they decided that red was too garish, black was too harsh, cream was too pure. Ben dismissed everything that Armitage suggested until Armitage pouted and checked the time. “We’ve got five minutes. Maybe we should just go,” he said. “The others will be there soon and we can get a table.”  
“You go ahead,” replied Ben with a wink. “I think I’ll look at a few more things and meet you there.” Armitage raised his eyebrows and Ben aimed his best sweet and innocent smile at him. “Maybe I’ll find something we’ll both like. Save me a seat and text when you’re ordering food and I’ll be right there.”  
Armitage handed Ben the credit card Brendol would pay off for the last time this month, kissed Ben’s cheek and waved as he left. Ben let him get out of sight then found the assistant.  
“Hey, look,” he said, “I don’t have a clue what will look good. But I need something stunning in under fifteen minutes.”  
The assistant smiled wide and nodded. “Wait right here. I think I can bring you a few alternatives.”

 

Ben walked into the restaurant and sat down just before the food arrived. Mitaka looked at the shopping bag embossed with the boutique name and raised an eyebrow. Ben stared him down. Thanisson examined his cutlery and went red. Armitage grinned. Phasma nudged Unamo and laughed. But nobody said anything at all.

 

Tired and full, Armitage suggested the luxury of a taxi home and Ben agreed. They held hands loosely on the back seat and occasionally smiled at one another during the short trip back to their street of limestone tenements, handed the driver some cash with a yelled instruction to _keep the change_ then almost raced one another upstairs to their flat. Armitage let them inside and immediately rounded on Ben.  
“I want to see what you got!” he said, face red from the run upstairs. “Show me!”  
“Ah,” said Ben, taking a box from his shopping bag and handing it to Armitage. “You want to see?”  
Armitage carried the box into the bedroom and opened it. He called out, “THAT’S DISGUSTING!”  
Ben creased into laughter. “You can throw that out with the other pairs. I’m wearing what I bought. Look in the other box too. It’s for you.”

Armitage carried Ben’s offensive old underpants to the kitchen and tipped them into the bin. He went back into the bedroom where Ben had laid out the other box. Ben opened it and Armitage stared.  
“Ben, that’s... that’s—“  
“Isn’t it pretty? Will you wear it?”  
Armitage touched the delicate, sheer fabric of the babydoll top and lace panties, and nodded. “You want me to put it on now?”  
Ben smiled and nodded. “I’ll wait in the living room.”

While Armitage changed, Ben put the TV on quietly. He undressed too and sat on one of their little sofas to wait for Armitage.  
“Hey,” a voice called from the door. “It’s me.”  
Ben turned to see, then stood.  
“Oh wow,” he said. “That colour on you is perfect. Sea green like your eyes. C’mere.”

Armitage held his breath for a few seconds then let out a low whistle. “What do you call that colour?” he asked. “I would never have... I mean, _fuck_ that’s hot!”  
“This?” Ben looked down over his dark purple satin and lace corset with matching panties that _just_ contained him, and smiled. “Eggplant. Aubergine, I should call it. Sh... I thought a darker, stronger colour for me and a paler one for you. Come here, sweetheart.”

Armitage took the three steps over from the doorway to Ben. A sound from the television distracted him and he pointed.  
“Oh! Is that—“ said Armitage.  
_“Alien._ I know,” said Ben.  
Armitage chewed his lower lip and looked at Ben. Ben laughed. “Want to watch a movie in our underwear than fall asleep?” he asked.  
Armitage smiled and nodded. “Sounds perfect,” he said. “I’ll bring the duvet through.”


End file.
